Summer of 2008 - Arushi and Hemraj

The summer of 2008 will be etched in my mind for a long time to come for various reasons. One of them is the much hyped Arushi-Hemraj murder case (henceforth referred to as A-H case) of Noida. No, it the hype is not Noida coz' I think it one place that is most notorious place for murder, rape and all illegal activities ever reported on Indian TV. The hype and interest is due to the way the whole case was handled both by our ever enthusiastic media and the quintessential Indian Police.
(I remember during my childhood days; not that I am ancient now :), most Hindi Bollywood films would show the entry of police with their sirens and jeeps only after the hero has single-handedly vanquished the villains.)
Due to being incapacitated by a minor health condition, I got the luxury of staying in bed and all I could do was catch every bit of news on TV channels apart from Nat Geo and Animal Planet. The A-H case caught my fancy due to the murder of a young girl just blooming into her teens. As usual the media hounds swooped in on the crime site maybe before the police too. Each move of the police was aired on TV with the common expression "BREAKING NEWS!!!"
What was striking is how the police never found Hemraj's body on the first day itself? The way the crime site was handled is least discussed the better. The CSI producers would die instantly on watching the same. It was also appalling to see how the police tried to pry open the Talwar's garage door with a kitchen appliance. No doubt so many people commit crimes in India knowing that with such primitive forensics and winding court cases most would get away easily in this lifetime.
The SSP of Meerut - Gurdarshan Singh provided rest of the fodder for the media and the viewers with first talking about Nidhi. Not once or twice but thrice!!! Nidhi???!!! Who? Well he meant Arushi but did not remember the name :). Then his press statements were straight out of Ekta Kapoor's serial. The father was already labeled as the murderer. No murder weapon, witness or proof but case solved. According to the SSP he found his daughter in an "objectionable" but not "compromising" position. What does THAT mean? How can the police reach to such a conclusion without any evidence? The case was further made juicy with the hint that the doctor was having an illicit affair with a co-doctor. Dr. Talwar spent 50 odd days in Dasna jail - thanks to the competent UP police, CBI and our emancipated media. (Christian Amanpour is the real trend setter) I think the shooting TRP of A-H case was only matched by IPL matches.
The case was handed to CBI, thanks to the intervention of certain politicians and public outrage. They have also taken their time, the case is still remains unsolved conventionally though a lot has been proven based on advanced scientific tests. But thankfully the poor father is out of jail and can grieve the death of his loving daughter with his family provided the media lets him be. :)
There are lot of debates on TV whether police or media are to blame for the mishandling of the case, for Dr. Talwar's extended stay in jail etc. The media is shouting hoarse to prove that they have done a good social deed instead of accepting that they are equally to blame for sensationalizing the case and giving their own opinion without any proven basis.
Yes, the media today plays a constructive role in many instances but they should act more responsibly in such cases. The competition of channels to outdo each other can be harmful for people like Dr. Talwar. And the media should act with some amount of compassion for the affected people instead of thrusting their microphones in their faces and asking them how they feel.
As far as the police is concerned; there is serious dearth of forensics in solving present day crimes. The images of crime scene investigation in the Nithari case is also vivid in my mind. The police personnel also need to understand that their each comment is viewed under a magnifying lens. Gurdarshan Singh's comments on Dr. Talwar were irresponsible and cheap. Channels went on to air special episodes on how kids feel about their fathers etc. Young minds are getting nurtured. We have certain obligations while exposing them to radical views.
I hope the case gets solved in the near future and most importantly the souls of Arushi and Hemraj rest in peace. A young dream is lost and maybe the sole earning member of a family too.